


Mon Minou

by Violett92



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Identity Reveal, double reveal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:00:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27829366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Violett92/pseuds/Violett92
Summary: After a long night of akuma fighting and only two hours of sleep, Marinette sleeps through the early morning Akuma Alarm. What she doesn’t miss, however, is how the whole class looks like somebody killed their cat.Hint: Looks can be deceiving.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 24
Kudos: 153





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is pretty angsty at first, but it doesn’t stay that way. Remember, looks can be deceiving. 
> 
> This fic will probably be around 2 or 3 chapters long, and they’ll more than likely be short chapters.
> 
> Edit: I was wrong, and I have no self control, so now this fic will be a bit longer.

When Marinette woke up that morning, she hadn’t expected her world to be tipped upside down and burned before her eyes. 

She had, however, expected to be late. 

“I’m here!” she gasped, leaning over her knees in the doorway to Mlle. Bustier’s classroom. It took her a moment to catch her breath and burst out her excuse, not that it would do her much good. “I’m so sorry I’m late. I accidentally slept—in. . . What’s going on?“

At her question, Rose burst into tears and buried her face in Juleka’s shirt, clinching the fabric tightly. Juleka winced and patted her head sympathetically.

The entire room—sans Adrien, who must have been held up with another early morning photoshoot—looked like somebody had just stepped on their cat. Or, more accurately, murdered it.

Silently, Marinette took her seat beside Alya, taking in her slumped shoulders and the dark bags under her eyes. “Why is everyone so upset?” Marinette asked in a hushed tone as Mlle. Bustier continued the lesson, although lacking her usual enthusiasm. Whatever had happened had managed to bring even Mlle. Bustier down, and _that_ took a lot. “Usually, I’m the one who hates mornings.” 

Alya’s expression fell even more, and dread twisted itself into a nauseous knot in Marinette’s gut. “You haven’t heard what happened?” Marinette shook her head, so Alya sighed and dug through her pocket for her phone. She tapped the screen a few times and turned down the volume before casting Marinette an uncertain glance and hesitantly handing it over. “See for yourself. I caught it on the Ladyblog before class started. I. . . wish I hadn’t.”

Alya tapped play on the video, and Marinette felt a frown pull at her face at the sight of Chat Noir fighting what looked to be an akuma. It strongly resembled a theater version of royalty, clad in a fur robe and golden crown, with a cane he wielded like a sword. Why didn’t Tikki wake her? She’d accidentally left her phone muted and slept through the Akuma Alert after the one they fought last night, but surely she would have gotten a message from her partner before he leapt into action. 

The knot of dread settled itself further as she watched the two fight, Chat dodging left and right and seemingly struggling by himself. Just when Marinette was on the edge of her seat with worry, her partner's face lit up, and he called for his cataclysm and leapt toward the crown on the villain’s head—no doubt where the akuma was hiding. 

Marinette expected that to be it. Her partner would cataclysm the crown, the akuma would flutter out, and he’d keep it safe until Ladybug showed up to purify it. Worst case scenario, the akuma _wouldn’t_ be in the crown, and he’d have to run off to transform and feed his kwami before going back at it.

What Marinette hadn’t expected was for the akuma to snatch Chat Noir’s wrist and spin him around, the dark magic in his hand colliding with his own chest as a bloodcurdling screen tore from his lungs—one she was thankful she couldn’t hear with the volume muted, but she knew her partner and she knew his expressions, even as they crumbled to ash before her eyes. 

Her hand shakily rose to cover her mouth as her entire world crashed and burned beneath her. Her vision spun and blurred with tears, and all she could think was _this is my fault. It’s my fault. It’s my—_

“Marinette?” Alya asked in a small voice, reaching out to take the tear-soaked phone from her friend. “Are you. . . are you okay?” 

_No. Dieu, please, no._ “This is my fault,” she whimpered, scrambling out of her seat, lungs heaving as she tried desperately to suck in the air that wouldn’t come. “Oh, _mon minou,_ t-this is all my fault.”

Alya’s eyes widened and she sucked in a sharp breath, but Marinette didn’t have time to question her. She needed to leave. She needed to—to— 

To what? What could she do? She wasn’t transformed, so there was nothing she _could_ do. Her cure wouldn’t work. Her lucky charm wouldn’t solve this situation. 

Her _Chaton_ was gone.

“Marinette?” Mlle. Bustier questioned, her brows furrowing with concern. The rest of the class watched her with wide eyes as the panic filled her chest and squeezed her lungs like a vice grip. _He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone._

“I-I’m sorry,” she choked, before turning and sprinting from the room. 

“Marinette, wait!” Alya cried behind her, but she didn’t stop. 

She shoved her way through the doorway and past Adrien, who turned to watch her with wide, shocked eyes. She vaguely heard him call after her, but she couldn’t stop. Not when she’d just lost one of the most important people in her life, all because she wasn’t there.

_It’s you and me and against the world, M’lady._

Maybe if she ran fast enough, she could forget what she saw. Maybe if she made it back to her room, Bunnix would be waiting for her, ready to fix everything. Maybe if she’d woken up earlier, if she wasn’t always so late for everything, she would have been there with him. She could have stopped the akuma, or taken the hit for him, or used her cure to bring him back. _Maybe, maybe, maybe_. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you, looks can be deceiving.
> 
> If anyone’s wondering when there will be updates on Hidden Meanings, I have no clue. I’m currently 4 months pregnant (and counting) and this baby has seeped all of my creativity right out of me. I can’t draw, and I can barely write, so there may not be updates until after the baby’s born. Sorry!


	2. Chapter 2

Adrien stated, wide-eyed, after his friend as she sprinted from the room in a rush. 

“We need to go after her, Nino!” Alya cried, and Adrien turned his attention to the girl in question, still trying to process the situation through his sleep-deprived, foggy mind. Alya leaned over her desk, staring worriedly at her boyfriend who looked equally as concerned and shocked. “Did you hear what she said? I think she’s—“

Nino gave a quick nod, his expression twisting to something resembling the determination Adrien only saw in his friend when he wore a green suit and stood side-by-side with Chat Noir and his lady. “I know. Let's go.”

Alya and Nino quickly scrambled to their feet, leaving their belongings at their desk, and raced past him out the door. 

“What’s going on? What’s wrong with Marientte?” Adrien called after them as he followed. He’d deal with his father’s wrath over skipping later on; Marinette’s feelings were far more important than a grounding. 

Alya spared him a thoughtful, strained glance before groaning. “She’ll kill me for this, but I don’t have time to come up with an excuse. Chat Noir died this morning, Marinette just watched the video, and I’m pretty sure she’s Ladybug, which means Ladybug just watched her partner die on a poorly filmed video.” The blood left Adrien’s face in a rush and his knees suddenly felt too weak to run. He slowed to a stop and caught Alya’s wrist, ignoring her pained glare when she was forced to slow her chase. “What are you doing?” she snapped. “We need to go after her!” 

“Chat Noir isn’t dead,” Adrien said slowly. 

“What are you talking about, dude?” Nino said, placing a hand on Alya’s shoulder to calm her. She still looked ready to dart away at a moment’s notice, but her shoulders had relaxed slightly at the contact. “It was live on the Ladyblog this morning. An akuma forced Chat to cataclysm himself.” 

Adrien winced, hoping his lady— _Marientte_ , if he was lucky—wouldn’t be too upset with him later. “It must have been some kind of illusion. I know for a fact Chat Noir is alive. A little exhausted after only two hours of sleep, but alive.” 

Alya was growing more frustrated by the minute. “What—“

Adrien caught Nino’s wrist with his free hand and, after checking that nobody was in the hallway, dragged them both into an empty classroom. 

“Adrien!” Alya cried.

Adrien ignored her, instead opting to check whether or not the classroom windows could be opened. He was pleased to find that yes, they could be. He pulled open his over-shirt and glanced down at his kwami, his stomach twisting in knots to see the anxiety on the little cat’s face. “You ready, Plagg?” 

Any traces of concern disappeared as Plagg flew from his hiding spot to stretch his arms high above his head, in clear view of Alya and Nino. “Let’s get this over with, kid.”

“Then let's go save M’lady.” He turned to see Alya and Nino gaping at him, eyes still wide with surprise even as he called for his transformation and left Chat Noir standing in his place. “Are you coming?” 

That seemed to snap them out of it. Both of his friends raced to his side and latched on, taking a moment to adjust their grips securely before he took a deep breath, extended his baton, and leapt from the window. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrien’s fine! I noticed a few people hadn’t caught that little line in the first chapter where Marinette pushes past him to leave the class, so it’s interesting to see how people will react to seeing he is, indeed, still alive.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof I’m back at 1am, surprise!

The moment Ladybug’s feet hit the floor of her balcony, her legs crumbled beneath her. Anguish pierced her heart as the image of her partner crumbling to ash before her replayed itself over and over again in her memories, and she let out a heart wrenching scream through her sobs as her arms wrapped protectively around her waist, fingernails begging to break through the suit and pierce skin, if only to distract her from the ache. Her chest felt like it was being crushed, but no matter how shakily she clawed at her sternum, the pain never went away. 

“Marientte!” came her mother’s panicked voice from her trap door. “I heard screaming! Are you—oh, dear.”

Sabine crawled through the hatch and held it open for her husband to climb through, although with much difficulty. His face fell when he saw his daughter, and he lowered himself beside her to pull her into his arms as she sobbed. “I see you’ve heard the news.”

Ladybug choked on a sob, the hands tangled in her father’s shirt tightening. Sabine sat down beside them and rubbed gentle circles over her back, whispering reassurances until her crying was reduced to nothing but occasional sniffles and an empty stare. 

“Why don’t you lie down and get some rest, now that I know you barely slept last night,” Sabine said softly. “We’ll talk about your attire later.”

Ladybug could only offer a small nod as she detached herself from her father’s arms and called off her transformation. “I’ll be down soon,” she croaked. “I just—I need—“ 

“ _Shh_ ,” Tom cooed. “It’s okay, _mon coeur_. Do whatever you need to do. We’ll be here if you need us.”

“Thanks,” she mumbled weakly, watching as her parents sent her a last concerned glance before retreating back through the hatch.

Once they were both gone, Marinette curled up against the brick wall behind her and tucked her head between her knees. She clenched her eyes shut in a futile attempt to fight off another round of tears.

_Dieu_ , she missed him. She missed him _so much_. He’d barely been gone half a day and she already felt a gaping emptiness in her chest, like a part of her was missing that she’d never, ever be able to recover. And maybe she _had_ lost a part of her. 

Her arms tightened around her legs, and she bit her lip so hard she feared she’d draw blood. She’d always taken Chat Noir for granted. His cheeky grins and sincere smiles. The way he threw his head back and held his stomach when she made him laugh. The way his deep, green gaze burned into her as he kissed her hand, projecting all his love and affection and trust, just for her to push him away like it meant nothing. 

In reality, it meant  _ everything_. Chat Noir was so much more than a partner to her; he was her best friend, her other half, and it shouldn’t have taken him dying for her to come to terms with how much she loved that silly, stubborn cat. 

She wasn’t sure how long she sat there, drowning in her thoughts and memories and tears, before she heard several thumps on the balcony before her. Her head snapped up with wide eyes, and the breath left her lungs in a rush to see her partner standing before her with concern plastered all over his beautiful face. 

It wasn’t until she noticed Alya and Nino beside him that she realized,  _ oh, Dieu, he’s real! _

Marinette scrambled to her feet in a mad dash to reach him; to touch him and hold him and prove that he was really here, that he wasn’t dead, that  _ he hadn’t left her_. And, as always, he met her halfway. 

Her hands roamed frantically—looking for what, she wasn’t sure—before she buried her face in his chest with a strangled sob. “H-How are you—but you—I don’t—“ 

Chat’s arms wrapped around her and held her impossibly right against him. He nuzzled his face into her hair affectionately. “ _Shh_ , M’lady, it’s okay. I’m okay.” 

It occurred to her that she was Marientte right now, not Ladybug, but she found she couldn’t care less that he knew her identity. He was here, alive, in her arms, and nothing else mattered. She couldn’t imagine living life without him in it, without knowing the name behind those kind eyes and soft smiles.

Ten seconds ago, Chat Noir was nothing but a boy with no name, no face, and no family to miss him. Because of her stupid identity rule, nobody would have known he was gone, that there was a boy to morn and not just one of Paris’ masked heroes. 

“D-Drop it,” she gasped, her grip tightening around him. “ _Please_. I need to know.” 

She whined in protest when he pulled back, just far enough to see her face. His eyes shifted between hers, hopeful but unsure. “Are you sure, Bug? You’re upset, and you’re not thinking clearly.” 

Her eyes welled with another round of tears, but she held them back. “I’m thinking more clearly than I ever have,” she admitted, the honesty in her voice surprising even her. “I want to know, Chat Noir. I want to know your full name and your family and your friends. I want to know your hobbies and your likes and dislikes, your favorite color, favorite foods, favorite places. I want to know what your house looks like and your biggest fears and dreams.” Her hands rose to cup his face, the shine in his own eyes nearly setting her off again. “Please, let me have that. I a-almost lost something I never even had.” 

His eyes softened, that loving look she adored with her entire being. He gave a small nod. “As you wish, M’lady. Claws in.”

She winced against the bright flash of green, before a fresh wave of tears washed over her at seeing Adrien standing before her, the same loving eyes staring down at her. Her legs crumbled beneath her, so he guided them both to their knees, holding her tight against him as she broke down for the third time in her balcony.

“We’ll wait inside,” Alya said softly, reminding her that they weren’t alone, before she dragged Nino through the trapdoor into her bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have 100% decided to extend this fic into a bigger one. I’m not going to make it massive, more in the 10 chapter range, if that, but updates may take a while. I’ve been swamped between my pregnancy and on top of that, I’m currently in the process of being hired, so I’m gonna have a lot on my plate for the next few months.


End file.
